Contact: Bob Jacobson, 608-204-8833
Forward Community Investments (FCI), a statewide community development financial institution based in Madison, is pleased to welcome three new members to its staff, as well as announce an internal promotion:
Louise Root-Robbins joins FCI as Vice President of Development. Root-Robbins comes to the organization from the UW-Madison Division of International Studies, where she held several different positions since 2010, most recently Assistant Dean for Advancement. She holds a PhD in Organizational Behavior and Development from Benedictine University in Chicago and a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Michigan.
Bob Jacobson has joined FCI as Communications Director. Jacobson served as Communications Manager at the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families from 1999 to 2004, and again from 2007 until this year. Jacobson is a graduate of Michigan State University, from which he received a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology.
Alicia Haynes is the new Loan Portfolio Manager at FCI. Prior to joining the FCI staff, Haynes was a Nutrition Education in UW-Extension’s Wisconsin Nutrition Education. She is a graduate of UW-Platteville with a degree in Psychology.
Jennifer Wendtland, Haynes’s predecessor as FCI’s Loan Portfolio Manager since 2011, has been promoted to Community Lending Analyst. Wendtland holds a Bachelor’s degree in accounting from Lakeland College.
2014 is proving to be an eventful year at FCI, which will be celebrating its 20th birthday in September. In addition to these staff changes, FCI announced earlier this week that it had been awarded $20 million in New Markets Tax Credits by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) Fund. These tax credits will significantly enhance FCI’s capacity to facilitate nonprofit projects in low-income communities.
2014 has also brought the roll-out of FCI’s new vision and mission, which the organization spent much of the past year developing. This new direction places a strong emphasis on social justice and an explicit commitment to supporting organizations and initiatives working to reduce social, economic, and racial disparities.
“We’re excited to have these new team members on board to help FCI move forward in pursuit of our new mission,” said FCI President Salli Martyniak.
